Virginia Tech and The Tailor in Heaven

Hopefully this will be my last comment on this terrible event. As I watched the news last night, I noticed the continued and persistent effort by the media to find a reason for this. It was the campus police who didn't shut down the campus, or the University Administration, or lack of gun control, or it was too much violence on TV, or could it be his upbringing (so lets find out if it's his parents fault). A reporter suggested it was the fact that he was an immigrant and oh, we sure have immigration problems. One reporter even talked about all of the many social ills in this country and said this was the reason he did it. Not one of them, not one single reporter, not one person interviewed, not anyone said it was the shooter's fault or that he is to blame, or that he is responsible for his actions.

It is remarkable. The media are like the tailor in heaven (see the fairy tale "The Tailor in Heaven") in order to punish and judge a single abuse which they notice from our Lord's usurped throne, they grab God's footstool and hurl it down to earth - yes, to punish it they would willingly destroy the whole world.

Virginia Tech

Today is a melancholy day. Yesterday we sat in the office looking at the internet watching reports of the shooting at VT. My heart goes out to the parents who went for long periods of time not knowing where their kids were or what the outcome would be. As of this morning, I understand many still don't know and bodies are still not identified. It's a parents worst fear.

I heard a story about parents in Philadelphia who felt the city was unsafe and they encouraged their son to go to VT because it's safe and quiet. He attended there but he won't next year. Everytime Tyler goes on a trip diving or traveling in some strange exotic place, we pray more.

The thing that irritated me was watching the news last night. I couldn't believe how fast all those big name reporters got to Virginia to get their "scoop." And they got it without regard for anyone but themselves.

What am I doing for others?

Working with franchisees everyday I am sometimes astounded at how poorly some of them treat their people. And I know this isn't peculiar to our company, it's common in business everywhere from top to bottom. When I see this I am reminded of what John Whitmore says, "the carrot and stick are pervasive and persuasive motivators. But if you treat people like donkeys they'll perform like donkeys." The only way I know to change people, is to see them differently, to see them doing it right, and see them being excellent. It has to start with me and then go forward, both up and down. And, I know I can't change the world but I can be someone who is different and model a better way. My prayer is that I'll be consistent and good at that.

Martin Luther King Jr. said, "Every man must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism or the darkness of destructive selfishness. This is the judgment. Life's most persistent and urgent question is, what are you doing for others?"

The Government

Those of you who know me, know that I don't have the highest regard for the government. All big institutions are sloppy, irresponsible, and inefficient. The larger they are the worse it is, leaving the U.S. government at the top of my list. In Denver we have this thing called the Federal Center which makes Denver the second highest employer of Federal employees behind only Washington D.C. Having been contracted to do work out there over the years, I can tell you first hand, it's a little sloppy.

I really like what Ronald Reagan once said, "Government is like a baby - an alimentary canal with a big appetite at one end and no sense of responsibility at the other."

A Good Meeting

I meet with the company's large franchise owners twice a year and facilite a meeting where they exchange ideas and best practices. Today we met in Minneapolis. I always enjoy these meetings because they're very challenging and thought provoking. These people are some of the best minds in ServiceMaster. When you put them all in the same room with a clear agenda, it's pretty amazing what you come away with. I am proud to be a part of a company that encourages open dialogue and continues to seek better ways to do things.

Blazer/Rocket game

Last night I took some of my friends to the Portland Trailblazer/Houston Rocket game (they are key franchise owners) in the Portland area. We had a great time. Below is me pictured with Samuel Okafor (middle) and Jerry Mitchell on the right. Pictured below is Mike and Angela Ulwelling. I guess there were about 15 or 16 of us at the game including my friend Genaro Torres.

The Quick and the Dead

Today I read another Louis L'Amour book on the plane, The Quick and the Dead. I thought this was one of his better books. There's a great quote in the book on page 39. A Young 12 year old is wanting the hero of the book Vallain to teach him how be a hunter and how to sneak through the woods like an Indian and be a frontiersman. Here's what Vallian says:

"Shut up, boy, an' listen." After a moment he said, "Trouble with city folks. Always talkin'. You never learn learn anything when you're talkin', boy, only when you're listenin."

Baseball When I Was Young

As I was growing up I always had a love for baseball. Some of this came from my mother who loved the game. She would sit and watch games for hours. She especially liked the Cincinnati Reds, and the Detroit Tigers. She liked the players for their character and humility, or in some cases she disliked them for the lack thereof. I recently came across this quote and it reminded me of my mother watching baseball and of course my father, who would play catch with me by the side of the house night after night on hot Scottsdale nights.

My father used to play with my brother and me in the yard. Mother would come out and say, “you’re tearing up the grass.” “We’re not raising grass,” Dad would reply, “we’re raising boys.”

-Harmon Killebrew

Red Rocks

Today, I went to Red Rocks for the second time in three days and exercised. It's worked before, so why not try it again. Running "snakes" up and down the steps is a great form of exercise. It's right on the way home and is easy to get to. I drive to the park, hike up to the amphitheatre, and run/walk (mostly walk) up the steps, back down again, and then repeat 8 or 9 times. This time I ran out of gas at about 40 minutes. Click here http://www.redrocksonline.com/pages/multimedia/photo.html for some good photos.

Actually, it's kind of fun because Nancy and I have some tickets this summer to a few concerts. I was able to see the seats and check out the view. Maybe I will be in shape to walk up with her to the concerts.

Tyler Beal

I recently got a blog from my son Tyler. He was visiting the Philippines on spring vacation. Besides visiting some World Heritage sites (unusual rice paddies) and going into a remarkable cave, he went diving off the coast on some WWII Japanese ships. These dives were well over 100 feet in difficult water. You should check out his site at http://dailybellybuttonlint.blogspot.com/ to see what he did.

I am very proud of Tyler for his outstanding accomplishments. He has taught English as a foreign language in several Japanese Jr. High Schools for nearly three years. He's learned the language (and Japanese is not easy) and traveled all over the Pacific rim. His blog is 2ox better than mine and very well written. He's a remarkable guy. And, he's only 26!! I think God has some great things in store for him. Check out his site for a great read.

More Snow on Easter

Easter Sunday...Nancy went to the sunrise service (I was calling it the snowfall service). They all sat outside and had the service in the snow. Not for me. I went to the 9:45a service and ate sweet rolls made by Kathy Miller. That's for me! She made hundreds of them!! I don't know how she does it. It was still snowing when I got back, so I shoveled the driveway. Otherwise it was going to freeze tonight and be there for days.

Also, we (I did, Nancy was "resting her eyes") stayed up and watched the Nug's whip the Clippers in LA. This was especially good because I don't like the Clippers very much. They need to learn to play with their feet, not their hands and elbows.

More Snow this morning

I got up only to see snow on the ground and more coming down. There is only half an inch or so, but if it keeps doing this I will have to get out the shovel. Is this winter's last hurrah? I doubt it. I think I'll go get some coffee and try to enjoy it with Nancy from inside, next to the fireplace.

Denver - 75, Dallas - 71

Nancy and I stayed up last night and watched the basketball game. This was certainly one of the best wins for the Nuggets this year. Even though I was frustrated with extremely poor officiating, and "push and mug" basketball by the Mavs, it was great to watch.

Nuggets upset Mavericks in possible playoff preview

The Denver Nuggets won with defense, of all things. Carmelo Anthony capped Denver's best defensive effort of the season by stealing Dirk Nowitzki's skip pass in the closing seconds, then sinking two free throws with 9 seconds left to seal the Nuggets' 75-71 win over the Dallas Mavericks on Friday night. Anthony left his man, Erick Dampier, and stepped in front of Jerry Stackhouse, then towed the line to stay inbounds. "I was looking at Dirk, I thought he was going to shoot the ball," Anthony said.

The Wedding

Last night we went to Rachel and Jeff's wedding. It was very nice and the prime rib at the reception was terrific. They had two harpists and a someone playing the violin at the wedding which was held at the First United Methodist Church. The wedding was Christ centered and focused on Ephesians 5. There were lots of children at the wedding and reception, which of course was what Rachel wanted.